TOKYO, Japan — The U.S. men's rugby team had their hopes dashed of any medals at the Tokyo Games after losing to Great Britain on Tuesday.
The loss hits hard for Tempe rugby fans, with two of the rugby team's members being from the mid-Arizona city.
Brett Thompson grew up around rugby in Tempe and began playing at 14. He also played Division I football at the University of Arizona. according to USA Rugby.
Maceo Brown started playing rugby in Tempe at 16 years old while also playing football and basketball. He participated in Division II college football for two years at Grand Canyon University before he excelled in playing rugby, USA Rugby said.
U.S. rugby was up 21-0 through the first half of play, but a yellow card diminished the Americans to six men during the second half, allowing the Brits to come back for a 26-21 victory.
Great Britain scored three tries within three and a half minutes to pull ahead in the second half after U.S. team member Stephen Tomasin was sent to the sin bin.
The Brits will advance to the semifinal round and go on to face New Zealand.
Even though the U.S. rugby team cannot win a medal, their Olympic tournament is still not over. They face Canada on Wednesday in a consolation matchup to decide the final rankings.
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